Engineered joists

AS AN integral partner to the engineered joist industry, Simpson Strong-Tie believes that 2008 has been the most dynamic year in the history of UK EWP, with some of the most difficult challenges for the industry still to come. Richard Jarvis, head of Simpson’s engineered timber division (ETD), comments on how these issues are being addressed by the UK’s leading connector manufacturer.

2008 has been a testing time for all of us. Amongst the challenges we have seen are:

• The biggest I-Joist manufacturer pulling out of Europe and selling their trading assets to FinnForest.

• New I-Joist manufacturers entering the UK market, with potentially more to come

• A huge shake-up of the National House Builder market, coupled with a reported 50 per cent reduction in volumes

• Raw material steel costs increasing significantly

To tackle these issues we have continued to invest in our sales, design & production divisions, and have restructured our business model to meet changing customer needs. Standing still cannot be an option.

In production, hangers have traditionally been made using large dies in 200-tonne presses, where hangers pop out at up to 60 per minute. However, with the number of I-Joist manufacturers in the marketplace decreasing from five down to four, then potentially back up to six - the latest to declare a UK interest is LP Building Products - Simpson’s product range has been increasing and manufacturing volumes diluted over even more hanger sizes. This has meant that our very efficient dies have become inefficient, as set up time outstrips running time.

In order to produce smaller run quantities economically, Simpson Strong-Tie has become the first connector manufacturer to invest in Staubli automated robots from the automotive industry, as part of the forming (folding) process.

The robots allow us to take some of the manufacturing process out of the die, without significantly increasing production costs. With simpler tools we can now punch smaller quantities and change sizes quickly. The robots then form the hangers as a secondary process, to suit the new product mix.

To help increase volumes Simpson has also invested in the European market.

Engineered joists are still gaining market share, and we’re now selling our products in 32 countries across Europe. This is a great opportunity to increase our manufacturing volumes, but historically we would have had to gain 32 sets of building regulation approvals. The introduction of European Technical Approvals, ‘harmonized standards’, allows us to test and prove our products to one common standard recognised across all member countries. Once approved we can then CE Mark our connectors as part of a £1,000,000 investment which sees Simpson as the first and only connector manufacturer to embrace CE marking across Europe.

Simpson’s new engineered timber division has been working hard to support customers who are faced with rising steel costs in a diminishing market.

We have to admit that any material increase couldn’t come at a tougher time for the construction industry. To lighten the load and reduce this impact Simpson has been developing products with lower steel content, and significantly reduced installation
costs – which are limiting the real cost to the builder. In the past year alone we have launched 12 new products, such as the ITBS, MJC, & SES - with many achieving direct specification by National House Builders.

However, we must ensure that we continue to remain good value for money. In doing this we have increased our sales effort, providing customers with technical support & design resource when making the transition to a new IJoist manufacturer. We have improved our service levels and are now the first connector manufacturer to offer next day delivery as standard. This is all backed with a newly developed range of products that is clearly ‘next generation’, improving quality of construction and reducing build cost.

This has been a year for working through the challenges. Our whole focus has been to further increase our value for money to the EWP market – by helping and supporting our customers through difficult trading conditions, and adapting quickly in response to the changes. By working hard now, it’s hoped we can all reap the benefits when volumes increase and the changes settle down.